bandy leg
- noun
- Archaic
- The creature sprang from the sill, landing on broad, splaytoed feet and bandy legs of wonderful elasticity.
Examples
-
He shared his father's terse, powerful genetic code: thick body, heavy arms, bandy legs, mastiff's jaw.
Fiction book (1996) -
He yanked his robe up to his waist and raced on naked bandy legs to the stone rostrum at the east of the forum.
Fiction book (2000) -
The athlete struggled to maintain his balance due to his bandy legs.
-
Children often teased him for having bandy legs that made him run awkwardly.
-
His bandy legs were a result of a rare condition that affected his growth.
Synonyms
2
7.1
Legs that curve outward below the knee so the knees stay apart when the feet are together
1
7.2
A leg that curves outward at the knee so the knees stay apart when standing with feet together
1
9.9
Legs that curve outward at the knees, leaving a space between the lower legs
A leg that bends outward below the knee so the knees are far apart
The lower leg bows outward below the knee
How Bowed
- Archaic
1
4.2
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly built from the adjective 'bandy' (knees set wide apart) modifying 'leg', so a learner who knows both words can infer a leg bowed outward at the knee. This adjective+noun composition is straightforward and parallels common cross-linguistic descriptions of bowed legs, making the expression immediately comprehensible.
Etymology
Bandy leg may come from an old word meaning 'to bend', creating the image of a bandy (bent) leg that curves outward like a bow. So, today it means 'a leg that curves outward'.